


A Wonderful Evening

by Jay (JayBorb), Troopes_Tent



Category: No Straight Roads (Video Game)
Genre: Ask To Tag because i'm certain i missed something here-, Fireworks, Gen, Neon J Has PTSD, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Purposefully Triggering Someone, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-18
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:54:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26520238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JayBorb/pseuds/Jay, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Troopes_Tent/pseuds/Troopes_Tent
Summary: 1010, finally, have a moment of peace to themselves. The whole evening, in fact. Neon J intends to make full use of this rare free-time, having a relaxing night to himself.Someone else has other plans.
Relationships: Family - Relationship
Comments: 53
Kudos: 313





	A Wonderful Evening

**Author's Note:**

> PLEASE read the tags before reading this fic!! there are potentially triggering topics here!!

Today had been a pretty good day, so far. There had been a Lights Up audition that morning that had gone pretty smoothly, the boys had finished their first uncommanded performance without a hitch, and the quasa was powered up for another week at least.

Neon J had the evening to himself to just _relax_.

The boys were off on another floor, he could just barely hear them yelling at each other about some game or another, but besides that, the mansion was quiet.

Peaceful.

\--

Elsewhere, a red haired man purchases fireworks, “Oh, just a personal celebration,” he tells the clerk.

\--

At the time, Neon J had a simple cup of lemon tea and a book in hand, with just his sweater on, his coat thrown over the back of the couch. He felt quite accomplished, so why not reward himself with his favorite novel?

Normally, days like these were rare. There were usually shenanigans in some form or another that would keep Neon from having a moment of relaxation- but not today. The boys were busy playing some games, everything was finished, _heck_ , Neon could even take a nap if he wanted to! Now _that_ was something rare.

\--

Just outside the gate to the mansion, the red haired man whistled joyfully to himself as he set up the fireworks he’d bought.

\--

Neon flipped the page in his book, taking a sip of his tea. What a wonderful evening.

\--

A chuckle fell from the man’s lips as he calmly placed the final firework in the ground and began the process of connecting them to a remote detonator.

\--

Neon chuckled softly as he heard one of his sons yell "UNO!-", followed by metallic hands slamming on a table.

\--

The man walked a safe distance away, having successfully connected the remote. He turned back to face the mansion, angle perfect for watching the fireworks.

“Have a _wonderful_ evening, 1010.”

He pressed _detonate_.

\--

A quiet, sizzling noise was heard...

Then suddenly, a large array of fireworks went off nearby, creating colorful bursts of light in the Metro Division District sky.

They would have been a pleasant surprise to see-

Had they not been so _loud_ \- so _close-_

On instinct, Neon dove for cover, hidden behind the couch he’d been lounging on, the loud, resounding _boom_ from the fireworks sounding eerily similar to incoming artillery- _who’s to say it wasn’t?_

The way the ground shook- how the sound shook his still beating heart- It scared the poor man half to death.

Pressing his back against the couch, he held his chest as he breathed like he'd just run a marathon. His vision began to blur as panic overtook his body-- he scrambled to grab his coat and shove his arms through the sleeves, desperately feeling for the texture of the soft fur hood with a shaky hand.

Breathe!- Breathe- Yell for help!- _Anything-_

Distantly, he could hear the clatter of chairs falling over from upstairs, and five sets of frantic, heavy footsteps.

In his mind, all he could hear was the incoming footsteps of an enemy squadron. He pressed himself harder against the back of the couch. His breathing grew desperate and weak as the footsteps became louder. He attempted to say something, _anything,_ to try and call for help- yet all that escaped his voice box was a sob.

\--

“Red, Blue, you two check downstairs, Yellow, Green, and I will check up here and dad’s office.” The other four saluted to White and then ran off to search the house. Suddenly, their eyes flashed a yellow triangle as a message took over their vision.

_**~ DANGER; Enemy Units Moving In ~** _

The five of them froze and looked back at each other, having not even left the room yet, and met one another’s eyes- he could hear their footsteps. They were all too heavy to just _avoid_ making any noise.

Hopefully the sounds of them running through the house didn’t set him off further. They continued to their designated search areas, trying desperately to muffle their frantic steps.

Green ran through the hallways, looking into every room he passed, all of them empty. It was times like this he really hated having such a big house- He passed White twice and Yellow once before they were all certain Dad wasn’t upstairs, and so they ran downstairs (or in Yellow’s case, jumped off the bannister) to meet their brothers and continue the search on the much larger ground floor.

Blue was the one to find him, tucked away in the corner, hiding behind a couch, in a sitting room about as far away from where they had been as possible. He sent his location data to his brothers, not wanting to shout and startle Neon more. From where he was at the doorway he could hear his laboured breathing and his fans whirring like mad, trying desperately to keep up with his quickly overheating systems.

Quietly, Blue approached him, kneeling down in front of Neon to get a better view of him. “Dad…?”

Neon flinched away from the sound of his voice, and if it was even possible, his fans kicked into a higher gear, his breathing becoming even more erratic. He curled even further in on himself, the top of his screen pressed against his knees as he tried to keep himself from shaking.

"Dad-!" Blue nearly yelled, but stopped himself at the last second. He knew that would only make it worse.

In mere seconds, Blue's siblings ran into the room, all gathering around him out of worry.

"Oh this- this is really bad-" White mumbled.

"-Really _really_ bad." Red continued.

_**~ Surrounded on all sides! Requesting backup! ~** _

The five of them shared a pained look, before Green carefully got closer to Neon, feeling his heart shatter to see his father like this. "D-dad? Dad please calm down- we're here... you're safe- it-it's just fireworks!" He slowly reached his hand out towards Neon, intending to rest it on his shoulder.

Before he could, though, Neon let out a strangled gasp and grabbed Green's wrist, holding tightly enough that the metal let out a groan. He looked up at his son without seeing him, "you're not- getting me _that_ easily-" he choked out.

Before bringing his foot to Green's chest and sending him across the room, to the horrified gasps of the rest of 1010.

As Green collided with the opposite wall the other four were split between helping him or trying to approach their dad again, though Green just waved them off, holding his wrist close to his chest.

“Dad- come on, it’s us!” White said, waving a hand in front of Neon’s screen- not within grabbing distance though- scared of what happened to Green happening to him as well.

“Come on- snap out of it-!” Red said, reaching for his shoulder just as Green had done- and Neon flipped him over the back of the couch, self defense training kicking in.

“There’s no getting through to him like this,” Blue said, helping Red to his feet. “I think we’ll have to switch him off-”

“ _How_ do you expect to do that? We can’t even touch him.”

White sighed, “We’ll have to hold him dow-” “I-I am _not_ allowing myself to fall to the hands of the enemy!” Neon blurted out.“-As long as the flag of rhythm still stands- I'll continue fighting against the likes of _you_!- The children will play in the streets freely once more!- I swear upon the souls of my fellow soldiers who sacrificed their _lives_ for this cause-” He ranted on as he fought against the grip of his sons on his arms and legs, trying to pin him down. “What do you _gain_ from this- what do you _want_?!- _Let go of me-!_ ” He begged and begged- as if his very life was on the line; and if he didnt break free there would be no future afterwards. No more Neon J, no more- “Yellow can you reach the button-?” White said nervously, holding down Neon’s leg and arm. “Are you sure we should do this? Some of his systems could malfunction-” “ _Just- do it!_ ” Quickly, Yellow reached over to the back of Neon’s head, struggling to reach the switch until-

 _Click!_ And just like that, the soldier's screen turned to black, and his body went limp.

Yellow sighed. “...Well...uh… What do we do now?”

“Move him back to his room I suppose-” Blue shrugged. “...And prepare for whatever will happen when we power him back on.”

“I’m still worried about what malfunctions could happen… What if his legs don’t work properly-”

“That's something we’ll worry about later. For now we just have to figure out how to help Dad out of this.”

“I...did not expect him to do that-” Green mumbled, sounding scared and fragile, still holding the wrist Neon had tried to crush close to his chest.

“Me neither.” Red sighed. “Normally he just flinches.”

“Dad’s screen was freaking out too.” White turned to green, and looked at his wrist. “Are you sure you’re okay?- while Dad is powered down we can try to fix your wrist.”

“No-No i’m fine...Dad is top priority right now.” Green waved his hand, fanning away White’s idea.

“If you say so…”

“Who’s carrying him.” Red said.

“Red, you’ll take Dad to his room, Uh- We’ll gather possible supplies?” White spoke with uncertainty.

“Got it.” Red saluted, followed by the others, and then they all went their separate ways. Red gently picked up his father, carrying him into his room, and then placing him on his bed; Green ran into the kitchen, grabbing whatever medicine he could from the cabinets, specifically pain and sleep medicine; White and Blue gathered pillows, blankets, and that one stress ball that Neon always seemed to have on him; And Yellow, too worried about his Dad’s bodily functions, ran to Neon’s room, plugged him into a computer, and ran a diagnostic check on his systems.

Once all the brothers arrived, they all placed their collected items on a table and gathered around their Dad. “...Yellow, are his cybernetics okay?” Green asked.

Yellow nodded. “Yeah- yeah everything's fine.”

“I think… I think we should turn him back on.” White said, holding Neon’s hand.

“ _Now?_ ” Red asked incredulously.

"We're not going to be able to get to him if he's shut off." Blue nodded. "We should hold his limbs just in case…He might freak out again."

Red, Yellow, and White held onto Neon's legs and arms from behind, readying themselves for whatever their dad might do.

"Green, boot him back on."

“Right.” Green walked behind his brothers, and reached over White’s shoulder to switch Neon back on. _Click!_

Neon woke up with a gasp, screen flickering on as his radar detected the people around him. Near instantly his fans powered up to full, his hyperventilation making his systems heat up almost immediately.

“Hold him down!” Blue commanded, and the other four complied, keeping a tight hold on Neon’s limbs against the bed, just in time for-

_**~ Surrounded on all sides! Requesting backup! ~** _

-a deafening burst of static to roll from Neon’s speakers as he kicked out with all his might, jolting Yellow enough he almost let go of the leg he was holding.

“Dad- it’s us-!” White pleaded from his place near Neon’s shoulder, “Your sons! There’s no enemy-!”

"Dad just breathe! You're safe!-" Green nearly lost his grip on Neon's arm, causing him to hold on tighter.

Blue looked around the room in a panic, grabbing the sleep medicine Green grabbed earlier.

"Guys try to keep him still- I have an idea but I need to get to the panel on his right arm."

"Well you'd better hurry with it!- it's getting a bit hard to hold on-" Yellow let out a small yelp as he avoided a kick from Neon, letting go of the leg he was holding onto. He held onto his leg again immediately after neon moved his leg away, making sure to hold it in a better position this time.

Blue nodded, then ran out the room to get a glass of water (now that he thought about it, they really should've gotten water when they were preparing…oh well-).

Getting a glass of water took ages. Watching the water slowly fill the cup as he heard Neon's bursts of static and his brother's attempts at calming the man from just a few rooms over... putting the sleep medicine into the water and watching it dissolve-

The worst part, by _far_ , was the ticking clock right above him on the wall.

_Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock._

It was all so _slow._ Could clocks taunt you? Blue wasn't sure, but it _definitely_ felt like it was.

Once the medicine _finally_ fully dissolved, Blue ran back into Neon's room.

"Okay I got the medicine! Someone get me his arm!"

White obliged, and made Neon hold out his arm, much to Neon's dismay.

With caution, Blue pushed the button on Neon's wrist, and opened the intake panel on his upper arm. This panel was how Neon drank things most of the time, due to him not having any form of mouth.

Blue took the small tube from the now-opened panel, and gently put it inside the cup of water.

The tube quickly began to take in the water, causing Neon's speakers to burst a loud wave of static as he realized what's happening.

"No- No-! D-Dont poison me! I'll never take your poison! This is _not_ the honorable way to take down a soldier!" Neon flinched his arm- but was quickly stopped by White. "Being poisoned by the enemy- what a shameful way to go-!"

Blue put the tube back in the opened panel then closed it, backing away slightly from his arm. "Maybe this will slow him down…"

_**~ Captain Has Been Compromised. ~** _

"Dad you're not- you're not going to die! It was just sleep medication-" Green said nervously, holding his dad's hand tightly.

Neon let out one more burst of static as he curled up into a ball, hugging his knees.

"I-i've failed my general- my purpose...my promise to the c-city-"

The boys let go of their father, and watched as he sobbed.

"Dad…"

The medication started to kick in.

"He's getting tired...Blue, I think your plan worked." White said, feeling more sadness than anything, though the relief that he'd stopped jacking them was palpable.

"Dad. Dad. Can you hear us-?" Red asked, slightly shaking Neon's shoulder.

No response.

"I don't think he can." Yellow mumbled.

"We need to make sure he feels safe. Safe and…feeling like he won't be dying soon." Green held his wrist.

Neon twitched.

He was lost in his mind. His memories.

And suddenly it all became too much for him.

He couldn't fight, he couldn't delay it.

He was scared.

 _Terrified_ , even.

And so he cried. A hand gripped the bedsheet, a desperate attempt to pull it closer to him to have something, A _nything_ warm to touch, to _comfort_ him. To hold him.

He cried and cried and _cried…_ Cried over the squadron he'd lost. Cried over the Faction. Cried over the mountain. Cried over the lost years of his old life, in which he made toys to make children smile…

His limbs ached. Was he not human? No. His limbs were cold. heavy.

_What has he become?_

The boys simply stood around him, exchanging looks of sadness to each other.

Wordlessly, they all gathered around him on the bed, and hugged him, causing Neon to be snapped out of what thoughts he was having at the moment.

"Dad- I don't know if you can hear us right now, but... We're here for you. We'll keep you safe, no matter what." White said, burying his face in Neon's back.

"I know that we fight sometimes. That we don't always get along. But- … I love you, Dad-J. You'll always be safe when we're around." Red continued.

Green sniffled, trying his best to not cry as well. "Dad I'm so sorry you had to go through all those bad things- A-and that it causes you to go through these real bad PTSD episodes...But you're not alone! We'll be here to help, no matter the occasion."

Yellow nodded. "Yeah what Green said! Never be afraid to ask us for help, Dad-J. Things can be scary sometimes but that's why we have each other. And we don't care if you're a cyborg or not. You're still our Dad, and we love you."

"...We love you so much, Dad. You're safe. None of us will ever hurt you… and we'll always be here to keep you safe. If you're having a moment… just call for us, okay?" Blue smiled softly when he felt his father nod.

"Cry if you need to, Dad. It's okay." White mumbled.

Neon's bursts of static quieted down a bit as he continued to cry out all the pain he had felt from the evening.

He was safe.

\--

About twenty minutes later, Neon's sleepy self began to fall asleep. But before he fell asleep, he muttered three words.

_"Thank you, troops."_

The boys nodded.

"You're welcome Dad."

"No prob, Dad!"

"Welcome, Dad-J."

"It's nothing, Dad-J."

"Sleep well, Dad."

Once Neon was asleep, they all got out of the bed, and pulled the blanket over him, before leaving the room, turning out the light, and closing the door.

White turned to his brothers, "Now to figure out who set off those fireworks."

"Check the security footage, they might have been near the gate," Blue suggested, already turning away, headed towards the security room.

“That’s probably our best bet, yeah- let’s go.”

\--

That- that was the guy who-

What was his name..?

_Kliff._

_That piece of **Plank**.-_

_MayDay did tell us that he wasn't a big fan of 1010...but seriously?! to this extent?!_

_Well. maybe it's not_ that _shocking. He_ did _send the NSR satellite hurtling down toward the city..._

With furious looks on their faces, all of 1010 nodded at each other.

" _Let's go._ "

\---

"Well, that was quite the entertaining fireworks show," Kliff said with a grin as he folded up his outdoor chair, wrapping the carrying strap over his shoulder. "I only hope that 1010 had as much fun as me…"

\--

"I got eyes locked on the target. Northwest. Seems unarmed." Red spoke sharply.

"Let's split and surround him." Yellow suggested.

"Operation Marigold or Two-face?" Green asked, inching slightly further back behind the bush they were hiding in.

"Screw protocols!" Blue whisper-yelled. "This- this _moist_ _fraud_ purposefully set off fireworks _right_ by Dad! He _hurt_ Dad! And _us_ , and practically _Everyone_ in Vinyl City-!"

"If anyone deserves what's coming to them, it's _Kliff._ " White nodded.

"Right. So no plan, just running in." Green watched their target, information on him taking up part of his eyesight.

With a single nod from White, the five of them split up, steadily, and _sneakily_ , heading toward their target as he obliviously packed his things.

Just as Kliff turned around to leave- He was quickly tackled by Red, which was followed by a yelp, and the sound of metal hitting the ground.

White squatted down in front of kliff, and lifted his chin up with a finger.

_**"So, Kliff. How is your Wonderful Evening?"** _

Kliff gulped.

_Maybe he didn't think this one out fully._

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed reading as much as we enjoyed writing!! <3
> 
> comments give us life please we beg of you


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